TAMPA, Fla. – Larry Rothschild stood in the parking lot outside the Yankees minor-league complex, with traffic buzzing past nearby on North Himes Avenue. For the team’s pitching coach, there was no crystal ball to gaze into, no way to answer one of the biggest questions his team faced as they prepare for the 2013 season: Can the aging trio atop the pitching rotation – CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte and Hiroki Kuroda – remain healthy during the course of the 162-game season?

“The only way you answer those questions is you get into the season and you stay healthy and you pitch well,” Rothschild said. “It’s going to come down to that, no matter what anybody thinks, the conjecture out there, or anything else.”

For the 2013 Yankees, a team lacking some of its trademark offensive weaponry, this trio of veterans is critical. They combined for a 3.23 ERA during their 495 innings of work in 2012, and they anchored a 95-win club. But their average age is 36, the sort of time when pitchers often falter.

Doctors removed a nettlesome bone spur from Sabathia’s elbow this offseason, after two stints on the disabled list in 2012. A fractured left fibula – a freak injury caused by a line drive – limited Pettitte, the 40-year-old lefty, to 12 regular-season starts. Kuroda has no lingering physical issues – but he does turn 38 on Sunday.

As Rothschild plans for 2013, he intends to be diligent monitoring each man’s workload. He mentioned the possibility of “watching innings,” skipping turns in the rotation or dialing back between-start workouts. But Rothschild also trusts each man to ready himself for the year. “They know what to do,” he said.

Sabathia is still the staff’s ace. Even with all the time missed last season, he still reached 200 innings for the sixth consecutive year, and led the American League with a 4.48 strikeout-to-walk ratio. In limited action, Pettitte still carved up hitters en route to a 2.78 ERA. And Kuroda was the revelation of the season, flourishing in the unfriendly confines of Yankee Stadium, racking up a career-high 219 2/3 innings with a 3.32 ERA.

Rounding out the rotation will be Phil Hughes and either Ivan Nova or David Phelps. Rothschild hopes to aid Nova as he rebounds from an ugly 2012. After an 16-win campaign in 2011, Nova sputtered in a lackluster follow-up, battling shoulder inflammation in August and execution issues throughout the season.

“My job going into spring training is to get him back to where he should be, pitching the way that he’s capable of,” Rothschild said. “And the rest takes care of itself.”

In addition, there is Michael Pineda, once championed as a future pillar of the franchise. Rothschild has monitored Pineda’s rehabilitation exercises for the past six weeks. The process figures to be arduous, as Pineda rebuilds strength in the surgically-repaired labrum of his right shoulder. Rothschild expects Pineda to graduate to his first full throwing session off a mound next week. “So far, he’s had no setbacks, which is always positive,” he said. “But there’s a long way to go with it, too.”

To Rothschild, that sentiment applies to both Pineda and the entire staff. Rothschild was asked if he appreciated the opportunity to manage an almost identical starting rotation two seasons in a row. Rothschild cautioned not to speak too soon.

“Well, first of all, we’re not into the season yet,” he said. “When we get to that point, I’ll answer that question. Not that I’m superstitious.”